1999 Dolley Madison Commemorative Silver Dollars

Marking a first for the United States Mint, the 1999 Dolley Madison Commemorative Silver Dollars were produced in association with the famous TIFFANY & CO.®

These commemorative silver coins were released to mark the 150th anniversary of the death of former First Lady of the United States Dolley Madison. Dolley is recognized by many as one of the most popular First Ladies in the history of the United States. She served as the hostess of the White House during her husband James Madison’s administration from March 4, 1809 – March 4, 1817. She was also known to fulfill those duties on many occasions during the administration of the third President of the United States Thomas Jefferson as Jefferson was a widower while in office.

Dolley is probably most remembered as being instrumental in the saving of Gilbert Stuart’s famous portrait of George Washington before it could be destroyed by advancing British forces who would eventually set fire to the White House. Even if she did not play a part in that affair, however, Dolley proved to be a popular First Lady and her influence on the social structure of Washington, D.C. was felt for decades.

Silver Dollar Information

The Dolley Madison Silver Dollars were authorized as part of the United States
Commemorative Coin Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-329) along with several other commemorative coins from the United States Mint. A maximum mintage of 500,000 was put in place for the strikes by the legislation across all product options including both proof and uncirculated condition coins.

Both the obverse and reverse of the strikes were designed by the renowned artists at TIFFANY & CO.®, an association that marked a first for the United States Mint. TIFFANY & CO.® created the designs just for use on these coins.

The obverse shows an image of Dolley Madison based on the portrait of her by Gilbert Stuart. Surrounding her is a bouquet of Cape Jasmines, her favorite flower, and she is shown in front of Montpelier’s classically-inspired ice house. The design was sculpted by T. James Ferrell and also includes the inscriptions of DOLLEY MADISON, LIBERTY, IN GOD WE TRUST and 1999.

On the reverse, we find an image of the classic Montpelier, the residence of James and Dolley Madison. It was sculpted by Thomas D. Rogers and also included the inscriptions of UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, ONE DOLLAR, MONTPELIER, E PLURIBUS UNUM and the Philadelphia mintmark of ‘P’.

The United States Mint also issued a Yellowstone National Park Commemorative Silver Dollar in 1999.

1999 Dolley Madison Silver Dollar Coin Specifications